Accent reduction

Amazon.com has several accent reduction courses/programs that sell for from a few dollars to about one hundred. How do they work? What kind of exercises to they use? I've seen the courses/programs available for English, but do they exist for other languages too? If you have personal experience using one, I would like very much to hear from you. Thanks!

Re: Accent reduction

I am an accent reduction specialist and a native English speaker. I have a Master's Degree in Speech-Language Pathology and I have an additional certification in Accent Reduction. I have worked with numerous professionals on reducing their accent for many years with excellent results.

Re: Accent reduction

Thomas,

I am a speech-language pathologist from Chicago specializing in accent reduction for foreign speakers who would like to speak standard American English. My favorite book for accent reduction basics on Amazon.com is "Lose Your Accent in 28 Days" by Judy Ravin. The book is well organized and easy to read and understand. The audio CD is helpful, but without a native speaker of standard American English to give you some feedback, you may not realize the differences in your speech production. You do not need to practice every aspect within this book or any other book for that matter. There are only certain pronunciation differences between Spanish speakers and American English speakers, but the details must be determined individually because no person speaks exactly like another.

The least expensive method to reduce your accent is to buy a book on Amazon and find a friend with an "American" accent to help. Be careful because there are many regional dialects of American English.

I offer private 50-minute sessions one time a week on Skype with clients all over the US and the world for $60 per session, but I also have some free resources on my website that should prove helpful with identifying the specific pronunciation changes you should consider. Check out the free resources for accent reduction if Spanish is your native language here: Spanish: Free American Accent Quiz and Tutorial for Spanish